


48 Hours

by aswellingstorm



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Angst, Break Up, Drama, F/F, F/M, Family Drama, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mystery, Post-Break Up, Romance, heres to hoping all of my forensic file binge-watches will finally pay off, idk - Freeform, kinda????
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-06
Updated: 2017-07-17
Packaged: 2018-11-28 16:25:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11421732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aswellingstorm/pseuds/aswellingstorm
Summary: “If a missing person isn’t found within the first 48 hours of their disappearance, the likelihood of finding them alive is cut in half.”After their break up, Betty and Jughead are stubbornly, stone-cold convinced that the other has moved on. But when a mutual friend mysteriously disappears after a Southside-Riverdale High back-to-school bash, they must race against the clock in order to find them alive.





	1. A Night to Remember

**Author's Note:**

> Bit of a time jump to the end of the summer after their Sophomore year! This is my first multi-chapter fic, so I’ll try to update once a week. I’m not sure how many chapters I’ll get up to, I accidentally shaved off half of my eyebrow today so I’m done with making solid commitments to anything. For reference: Hiram is free, Fred is still in the hospital, FP is still in jail, Jason is still dead.
> 
> as always you can follow my tumblr @: aswellingstorm.tumblr.com
> 
> enjoy!

“If a missing person isn’t found within the first 48 hours of their disappearance, the likelihood of finding them alive is cut in half.”

 

After their break up, Betty and Jughead are stubbornly, stone-cold convinced that the other has moved on. But when a mutual friend mysteriously disappears after a Southside-Riverdale High back-to-school bash, they must race against the clock in order to find them alive.

 

Notes: Bit of a time jump to the end of the summer after their Sophomore year! This is my first multi-chapter fic, so I’ll try to update once a week. I’m not sure how many chapters I’ll get up to, I accidentally shaved off half of my eyebrow today so I’m done with making solid commitments to anything.

 

\--

 

“ _Soooo_ ,” Veronica stood in front of Betty’s mirror, adjusting her loosely-curled hair with one hand and the string of pearls around her neck with the other. “What are we gonna do with _you_?”

 

She was wearing a navy blue peplum dress with black stilettos, gripping onto a white Michael Kors clutch. Betty, on the opposite end of the spectrum however, was face-first into a mountain of fluffy pillows on her bed, wearing her favorite groutfit-- gray sweat pants from Victoria’s Secret, gray oversized thin hoodie she fished out of Polly’s maternity clothes, gray socks, gray headband that pushed her golden hair into a messy bun.

 

If Veronica had to take an educated guess, she’d say that Betty’s panties and sports bra (there was _no_ way Betty went through the effort of putting on an actual bra today) were also gray.

 

“ _Mmmppphfff_ ,” the gray-girl in question moaned in response, not caring to lift her face off the pillow.

 

“Come on Betty!” Veronica sighed, turning to face her, “First of all, I’m _so_ disappointed in you for jumping aboard the _Groutfit_ train that should’ve derailed itself in 2016. Second, aren’t you excited? This is _your_ dance!”

 

Betty new Veronica was saying that only for the purpose of baiting her into moving, but damn, it worked. She shot up out of her cloud of blankets and pillows, “This is not _my_ dance. I just brainstormed it with Mayor McCoy, convinced Southside High to go along with the idea, organized a planning committee between both schools, picked the theme, organized the catering and the entertainment, spent the past twelve hours decorating Riverdale High and _praying_ I could get the smell of mystery meat Mondays out of the cafeteria.”

 

Veronica just sent her an admonishing look with an arched brow, “So what? You’re just not going to go? After sacrificing so much of your time and brain power to it? I mean, Betty, this dance is the first actual step to reuniting the town. And it _was_ all your idea, don’t you want to at least go take credit for it? Have fun and enjoy yourself?”

 

“I’m already getting credit for it,” Betty argued, “Mayor McCoy is writing me a recommendation letter and let’s not forget how great of a – “

 

“Resume booster it is. I know. You’ve said that about a million times now,” Veronica finished her sentence, rolling her eyes.

 

Betty just shook her head and folded her arms over her lap, “I’m just tired V.”

 

“I know you are,” Veronica walked over, putting her hands on Betty’s shoulder comfortingly, “But this will be fun!” She shot a pointed look to Kevin, who was sitting in the corner, eagerly texting his new boyfriend.

 

“Elizabeth Marie Cooper,” He spoke up, clearing his throat and finally putting his phone down, “You’re going out tonight, come hell or high water.”

 

He joined Veronica at the foot of Betty’s bed, grabbing her forearms and pulling her off of the bed.

 

Kevin and Veronica ventured to Betty’s closet, pulling out a periwinkle sundress that was lacy around the collar and the sleeves and had a cinched waist with a high to low skirt. He was fishing around for a pair of heels when Veronica led Betty to a seat in front of her vanity.

 

Gently, she tugged Betty’s hair out of the bun. It had grown a bit longer, reaching well past her shoulders when her hair was straight. But today, her hair had dried with a natural wave and Veronica ran her fingers through it as Betty unhappily put on makeup.

 

“Hm,” the raven haired girl said aloud, “What should we do with it? I’m tired of your usual.”

 

Betty just rolled her eyes in response, a dangerous move as she was applying mascara. “You could just do nothing to it, and let me get back to my _True Blood_ marathon.”

 

“You were watching _Cupcake Wars_ and you know it,” Kevin called out from the closet.

 

Veronica parted Betty’s hair to the side and began to French braid it in the back, leaving a few hairs to frame her face. “I bet _he’ll_ be there tonight,” she said absently.

 

“Probably, the entire student body of this town was invited,” Betty said absently, with coldness seeping into her voice, “Unless he’s transferred out of Southside, but lord knows he would _never_.”

 

“Maybe you’ll see him. You guys haven’t talked since, um-” Kevin was shooting Veronica daggers and mouthing, “ _Are you insane_?” to her.

 

“No, we haven’t,” Betty agreed, shoving her mascara wand down it’s tube and forcefully putting it back in its respectful drawer.

 

“It could be _nice_ ,” Veronica suggested gently, finishing off her braid and tucking on it to make it wider.

 

“Nice for who, exactly?” She asked, grabbing a pink, glossy lipstick and delicately applying it across her lips.

 

“Archie told me that with FP getting out soon, he might be coming back to Riverdale in the first few weeks,” Veronica continued, pressing her luck by saying, “He said that Gladys and Jellybean might even be coming back- “

 

“Sounds great,” Betty said, eager for Veronica to quit beating around the bush. The Lodge girl began to roll the ends of the braid together, tucking them under the French-part of the braid to make an elegant bun.

 

She reached for bobby pins, “It _sounds_ like you two might have a lot to catch up on.”

 

“Can you just _drop it_?”  Betty snapped, turning her heard to glare at Veronica and shucking the lipstick.

 

Tentatively, Veronica put her hands up to surrender before muttering an apology.

 

“It’s…” Betty started to say as Veronica finished with her hair and Kevin came over with a necklace, arranging it round her neck, “It’s not like he even _cares_.”

 

“Well then, it’s his loss,” Veronica said, looking down in the mirror at the three of them, “We look _hot_!” She stated, as they all laughed.

 

“I’m gonna go get the car ready and I’ve got dibs on the aux!” Kevin exclaimed, running down the stairs to his car.

 

“No Spotify Top 50 Kev!” Veronica yelled back, “ _Please!”_

 

Betty stood up, examining the necklace in the middle. It was a simple sterling silver chain with a single, dainty diamond in the center, somehow it looked familiar in a manner similar to the pearls on Veronicas neck.

 

“V, is this your necklace?” Betty asked, confused.

 

“Yeah,” She shrugged, “But it looks better on you. And everyone knows I’m a pearl kind of girl.” She said with a wink.

 

“Are those new?” She asked, they were more gray-tinted than the original sets her father had gifted her.

 

Her eyes lit up in affirmation, “Yes! My father just left them in our dining room this morning with my name on them! Normally he leaves a note thanking me for something, but I really don’t think I _did_ anything this time for him. He left me that necklace too,” she said, pointing to the one around Betty’s neck.

 

Betty smiled, “Well who are _we_ to look a gift horse in the mouth?” She joked as she linked arms with Veronica.

 

Suddenly, Veronicas mood shifted and her gaze dropped, “B, can I tell you something?”

 

“Of course, what’s up?” She asked, concerned eyes meeting hers.”

 

“I’ve had this weird feeling lately. I know it’s crazy but it almost feels like…” Veronica trailed off, looking for the right words to describe how she’d been feeling the past few days, “Like I’m being wa- “

 

**_BEEP. BEEEEEEP. BEEP._ **

****

They both jumped at Kevin’s impatience and rolled their eyes.

 

“Let’s go before he wakes up the twins,” Betty suggested as they ran down the stairs, past the nursery.

 

When they got to the car, Betty turned around and asked, “What were you saying before V?”

 

In response, she rolled her eyes and opened the car door, “Don’t worry about it, it’s nothing.”

 

 _Despactio_ came blaring through the speakers of Kevin’s car, prompting both of them to groan in unison.

 

\--

With Veronica on her left arm and Kevin linked to her right, Betty stepped into the cafeteria. Involuntarily, a smile broke out into her face. She had only been there a few hours ago decorating the gym to the theme of _A Night to Remember_. Satin blue curtains spanning the darker end of the blue spectrum mixed with purple hues were elegantly draped over the rafters in the ceiling and elegantly pinned against the wall. Christmas lights accented the curtains with round lanterns perfectly patterned across the room, giving the area a soft romantic glow.

 

There were a few tables set up with golden, sparkling stars as the centerpieces. Much to her chagrin, there was even a balloon arch made out of golden star balloons with thick pillars. She thought it looked misplaced and wasn’t even fond of the theme in the first place, but as head of the committee, she had to be willing to compromise. When the students from Southside were overwhelmingly in favor of _A Night to Remember_ (it was supposed to be the theme of their prom the past year, but it was canceled for budget reasons).

 

Her idea was, at the very least, achieving the desired effects. It was evident that the two student bodies were mixing and mingling rather happily. Groups were either dancing towards the back of the room, or talking happily at the tables over appetizers. Betty even noticed her own mother talking to some of her old neighbors from when she lived on Southside grounds.

 

In that moment, Betty recognized that Veronica _was_ right. It did feel nice to reap the rewards of her hard work, and it was better than sitting at home and binge-watching whatever _happened_ to be on _The Food Network_ (it was, most definitely, _Cupcake Wars_ ).

 

She sent an appreciative glance to her best friend, giving her arm a gentle squeeze.

 

“Hey guys!” Archie jogged over to the group with a toothy grin on his face. He glanced at Betty and Kevin before focusing his attention to Veronica. “Ronnie you look…incredible!”

 

She smirked at him before giving him a kiss on the cheek, “You clean up well, Archiekins.”

 

Watching them display their affection for each other left Betty feeling a little lonely, but she respectfully clamped those feelings down. She knew they didn’t get much time together anymore, with Hiram in town and Mary stepping in to take care of Archie. Neither parents exactly approved of their child dating the other, which made simply hanging out with each other a harrowing task. Betty wouldn’t allow herself to feel jealous of the couple when they were merely trying to enjoy the rare, fleeting moments that they had together.

 

Archie grabbed Veronica’s hand, leading her to the dance floor and she pulled Betty and Kevin in tow. They laughed as they reached the back of the room, but not before Betty locked eyes with a certain _someone_ , her stomach tightening.

 

“Oh _my_ god,” Kevin gasped, nearly crashing into Betty.

 

Because, there was Jughead Jones all dressed up in the middle of the cafeteria. And he wasn’t alone, either. He was accompanied by a _girl_ with pink hair, beautiful brown skin and a purple dress that matched Jughead’s pocket square.

 

Veronica and Archie turned, wondering what had halted their friends. Following Betty and Kevin’s gaze, Veronica rolled her eyes. It had been a good ten seconds, and neither Betty nor Jughead broke their graze from each other.

 

“How _dare_ he? This is _your_ dance!” Kevin yelled, a little too loudly, breaking Jughead’s gaze.

 

Snapping out her trance, Betty shook her head before letting out a forced laugh. If he was over _her_ , she was sure as _hell_ going to be over him. “Who cares? Let’s go dance!” She said with a false bravado.

 

Betty grabbed Kevin’s hand, following Archie and Veronica into the crowd of people. Instantly, she found some of the people she was on the committee with and their groups merged. She could feel traitorous tears welling up in her eyes, but refused to give in to them.

 

Over the boisterous fast-paced music, Veronica sent her a dazzling smile and yelled, “Proud of you girl!”

 

\--

 

After dancing for what felt like _hours_ , Veronica and Archie broke apart from the rest of the group. Kevin excitedly claimed that his new boyfriend had just arrived, and bounced off to go find him. Betty was absolutely parched, and wandered off to the refreshments table. She grabbed herself a clear cup of water and cautiously took a sniff of it to make sure it hadn’t been tainted.

 

Upon deeming it clean, she took a sip, scanning out into the crowd. She was hyper-aware of Jughead’s presence at the end of the refreshment area, a good six tables away. Not that Betty had counted. She made an active effort to make sure her gaze didn’t fall to him and pretended as though she wasn’t even aware he was nearby.

 

Mayor McCoy and Sheriff Keller came over to congratulate her on a job well done, to which she humbly thanked them.

 

 **“ _Alriiiiiight Riverdale!_** ” The DJ’s voice boomed from the speakers, “ ** _I’m gonna take it down a few notches for y’all tonight! Partner up ‘cause it’s time for a slooooow dance!”_**

 

She began to play _Slow Hands_ , and the crowd cheered before breaking into pairs. Betty felt awkward as she stood there, feeling as though she stood out more now than ever before.

 

“Is _this_ what they call slow dancing these days?” she heard Sheriff Keller ask from the corner of the room where he and the mayor had moved to, “And what’s with this _music_?”

 

Like nothing short of a saving grace, Trevor Brown walked up to Betty with a shy smile on his face.

 

“Hey Betty,” He said softly, “Do you wanna…uh, would you like to…?”

 

“Dance?” Betty finished for him, with a genuine smile on her face, “Trev, I would love to.”

 

She let him lead her out to the floor, thinking about how she should probably send him an Edible Arrangment for sparing her from looking like an outsider. She placed her hands on his shoulders as he gently put his just above her hips as they danced. Over his shoulder, Betty saw Jughead seething in the corner, gripping a cup of water too tightly.

 

“This is a _great_ dance Betty,” he complimented her, and she shifted her gaze towards him.

 

With a blush thanked him. “No really I mean it, with the lights and the music and everyone’s getting along…it’s _perfect_.” He said and her stomach clenched.

 

Betty changed the topic seamlessly, knowing that he meant well. She was truly grateful for him, but something in her gut still twisted uncomfortably. He wasn’t the guy she truly wanted to be dancing with. She searched the crowd for Archie and Veronica, but couldn’t find either of them.

 

\--

 

“It’s funny how when Archie was updating me on all of the latest happenings in the life of Jughead Jones, he didn’t mention that you had a _girlfriend_ ,” Veronica appeared behind him, causing him to startle.

 

Betty was currently talking to the crooked sheriff and Mayor. Jughead simply shook his head in response, “What do you want Veronica?”

 

“Ouch,” she responded, feigning hurt, “Is that anyway to greet an old friend?”

 

“We were never that close,” He stated coolly, shifting his glance to the floor.

 

“Yeah, okay,” she snorted, “We were dating each other’s best friends. Remember that?”

 

“The operative word in that sentence being _‘were’_ ,” Jughead responded sullenly.

 

“Jughead,” she snapped, “Everyone makes mistakes, believe me, I get it. You didn’t mean to hurt her, and I know she wasn’t entirely in the right either. But you have a chance to make things right. Why wouldn’t you take it?”

 

“Aside from the fact that I’m here with someone else?” He turned to her, raising an eyebrow.

 

Veronica laughed, “Right. The girl who’s been all over Cheryl for the past hour?”

 

Involuntarily, Jughead laughed and shook his head. _Toni moves fast_ , he thought as the DJ began to pass some pop song off as a slow song. Students began to couple together to slow dance and he looked at Betty again.

 

“All I’m saying,” Veronica spoke softly, whispering in his ear, “Is that you better make a move before someone else does.”

 

With that she simpered away, towards the front of the cafeteria to look for Archie. As soon as Jughead took a nervous gulp and cautious step forward, Trevor Brown stepped up to her and asked for her hand in dance.

 

Happily, Betty accepted and Jughead felt his grip on the cup tighten. This had been a waste of time, he figured as he watched Betty lace her arms over Trev’s shoulders.

 

Betty Cooper was lightyears beyond and over him.

 

\--

 

As the dance finally began to come to a close and students shuffled out, Betty pulled out her phone and texted Veronica. As a few minutes passed, she called her and was surprised to hear her phone continue to ring, as if it had been disconnected.

 

In a panic, Archie and Kevin ran up to her, “Have you seen Veronica?” Archie asked hurriedly.

 

“No, I haven’t,” She shook her head as the sheriff approached. It was close to eleven-thirty, and Betty hadn’t seen her since at least nine o’clock.

 

“I thought she was with you?” She asked Archie, and he shook his head.

 

“I haven’t seen her since we slow danced,” He argued.

 

“I didn’t see her either,” Cheryl piped in, lipstick a bit smudged and hair slightly tangled. The three of them appraised her, wanting to ask but deciding there were more pressing matters at hand.

 

The sheriff turned around, phone in hand, with a grim look on his face, “Hiram and Hermione say she hasn’t come home either.”

 

Jughead his date began to walk over, looking concerned. Betty didn’t notice, didn’t register their faces or hear their voices. She felt her heart pounding in her chest with the sheriffs verdict resounding in her head:

 

_Veronica Lodge is now classified as a missing person. This is hour zero._

 

 

 


	2. Better Together

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aswellingstorm.tumblr.com

_Hour Three_

 

On a typical Friday night, all of the lights in Riverdale were off by midnight-save for the nightclubs that closed at two in the morning. However, this particular Friday night was far from typical, and far from over. It was around two-thirty in the morning and all of the lights in town were on. Every home, store front, street lamp and even Christmas lights that should have been taken down months ago, were alit.

 

The town was being scoured, every stone turned over and not a single soul was sound asleep in the comfort of their bed. Everyone, no matter the level of sleep deprivation, was searching for Veronica Lodge who had mysteriously vanished during the dance. Finding her was a race against the clock as the Sheriff had made them all aware that if they didn’t find her within the first 48 hours of her disappearance, the likelihood of finding her _alive_ was cut in half.

 

Normally, there’s a twenty-four hour waiting period before a person can be legally declared as missing but seeing as Veronica was both a minor and the daughter of the richest man in town, there was no time to waste.

 

Neighbor was teaming up with neighbor in the search and family grudges were put on the back burner. Alice leant a comforting hand to Hermione, recalling how just a few months ago they were embarking on a search for _her_ daughter instead. Those living on the Southside joined in on the search, including the Serpents.

 

Everyone was outside, teaming up, splitting off, strategically searching every crevice of the town for her.

 

Or…perhaps not _everyone_ was out looking for Veronica. A blonde haired girl stood in the office of the school newspaper by herself, already leagues ahead of what investigators thought they knew. Nobody knew her best friend as well as Betty Cooper did, and the young girl rendered pounding the pavement as useless. Betty figured that maybe, if Veronica had run away, locking the town gates would help prevent her from getting too far. But Veronica hadn’t run away, that much Betty was certain of.

 

She was still dressed in her dress from the dance although it was beginning to wrinkle and her braid becoming frayed. The blonde was standing in the front of the Blue and Gold Office, having pinned a picture of Veronica to the middle of the bulletin board with a list of potential perpetrators circling the photo.

 

When she heard footsteps approaching in the hallway, she scrambled to her feet to quickly turn the board upside down to reveal the blank side of it. She was relieved to see Kevin stroll in with his usual candor.

 

“ _Elizabeth_!” Kevin’s voice rang throughout the office with shock.  He took in her appearance, the tired look in her eyes and the blank board, “I see _you_ have been up to nothing at all!”

 

In response, she rolled her eyes at him. “Is that coffee, Kev?” She asked, noticing the large beverages in the cup holder he was carrying. She made a move for one of them when he teasingly held it above her, out of her reach.

 

“ _Coffee_ is reserved only for the busy beavers of this town who are working diligently to find Veronica Lodge,” He responded, eyebrow quirked.

 

She huffed before turning the board over, revealing the past three hours of hard work. At his opened jaw, she smirked. Breathlessly Kevin muttered, “Guess your bloodhound of choice is a good old fashioned murder board.”

 

Betty bristled, balling her fists, “It’s not a murder board, Kevin. She isn’t _dead_.” Her heart raced at the implication because she had no idea if those words were true. Veronica _could_ very well already be dead, Betty would have no way of knowing. She wished she could somehow just _sense_ it, if V were in true danger or close to death. On the ID channel, Betty had seen some of the families of the victims possess a sixth sense like that.

 

“I know, I know,” he placated, handing her a cup, “It’s just…it’s so… _wow_.”

 

“Thorough would be a good word for it,” She corrected.

 

He winced after he took a gulp of the liquid that was still too hot for human consumption, “So tell me what you’ve got, Sherlock.”

 

Betty set her coffee down, clasped her hands together and shifted her weight forward, “Well, for starters, Veronica hasn’t been acting weird or…or flighty. She hasn’t had any more problems than usual with Archie, her parents are getting along fine, her grades are fine, she’s never had a job in her life, isn’t pressed for money, she’s not on drugs so…she had no reason to run away.”

 

Kevin nodded absorbing the conclusion without question, “Obviously.”

 

“So someone took her, the question remaining-”

 

“ _’Who has something to gain by kidnapping Veronica Lodge_?’” A familiar voice finished the sentence with her, right in time with her words and was lurking in the hallway.

 

Kevin and Betty snapped around to face the source of the interruption, eyes finding Jughead and…his _girlfriend_? Involuntarily, Betty rolled her eyes. When she started her own investigation in the office of the Blue and Gold, she had almost anticipated his presence. Even after all of the time passed between them, she still knew him too well. She’d known, in the back of her mind, he’d come here to offer assistance. Not wanting to show her hand, Betty opened her mouth to ask Jughead what he thought he was doing but Kevin beat her to the punch.

 

He placed his coffee on the table he was leaning against, put a dazzling, overbearingly bright smile on his face before stepping up to them. His hands were politely cupped in front of him and he bent down a bit, as if he were talking to children.

 

“Thank you for visiting the office of Betty Cooper, she’s currently _unavailable_ right now but it’d be happy to take a message for her to review at her own leisure… at a later date, of course.” Kevin crossed his arms in front of him, attempting to appear intimidating. Betty ducked her head.

 

Jughead just snorted and Toni rolled her eyes, “We can see her standing _right there_.”

 

“ _Wow!_ ” Kevin exclaimed with purely false enthusiasm, “Look at you two go! Being able to perform basic human functions and all. Must be difficult-”

 

“Listen pretty boy,” Toni shot back, eyebrow raised in offense.

 

“I’ve _been_ listening-”

 

With the useless banter proceeding, Betty was unable to concentrate. She huffed in annoyance, feeling every grain of sand as it fell through an unseen hourglass, counting down on their limited time. Jughead was looking at her expectantly, a cautious look mixed with one that said “Should you break them up, or should I?”.

 

“Enough!” Betty called out as the two continued to bicker, she stood next to Kevin arms crossed in an identical manner.

 

She wanted to look anywhere but at _him_. But more so, she didn’t want to look weak. She didn’t want him to know that just a mere glance in his direction was enough to catch her breath in her throat and feel her stomach plummet. He couldn’t know that he’d hurt her, now or ever before. Betty would never give him the upper hand like that again. She swallowed her hurt, pushed her reservations to the back of her brain and looked him squarely in his face.

 

“In case _neither_ of you have noticed,” Betty bit out fiercely, “No one has time to deal with…with whatever it is you two want.”

 

“What we _want_ is to help,” Jughead spoke up, looking at his former girlfriend with the same intensity.

 

“Then there’s the door, problem solved!” Kevin retorted back, prompting a nudge in his side from Betty.

 

Ignoring him, Jughead sighed, “Listen, Betty, you and I both know that Veronica wouldn’t have just…upped and left. Whoever has her, has some ulterior motive. And if you want to find her alive, then I’m your best bet.”  


“And whys that?” Betty questioned, eyes narrowing and head tilted, “I’m perfectly capable of doing this on my own.” Kevin coughed, “And with Kev.”

 

“Kevin? Kevin, who could get distracted by a freaking butterfly?” Jughead asked incredulously.  
  
“It’s called ADHD, Jones, and your former lover has it too so I’d be really careful with what you say next!” Kevin hissed out. At the use of the phrase _former lover_ , Betty and Jughead both looked away from each other pointedly.

 

“C’mon,” Jughead pleaded, “You know there’s no one who can solve this faster than you and I. We could try do to it apart, waste precious time, and then decide in a few days that we _should’ve_ joined forces…or we can figure this out and find her, together.”

 

The last word, made both of them blush and shift uncomfortably, “Besides, don’t you think if there’s ever a time to push our own personal grudges aside for the greater good, it’s now?” He continued with a slight step forward

 

Betty worried her lip between her top teeth, contemplating, “What’s she doing here?” She nodded in Toni’s direction.

 

Toni stepped forward, “If you need anything from the Southside, I’m your best bet…Also I’m here to make sure _none_ of you snooty bitches from Riverdale try to use the Southside as your scapegoat.” She eyed Kevin wearily.

 

“Why do you even care, Jughead?” Kevin asked accepting her answer with a nod and shifting attention back to the boy.

 

“She was my friend too,” He responded plainly, not caring to elaborate.

 

“Well, we’ll take all of this into consideration and get back to you—”

 

Betty cut Kevin off, surprising everyone in the room, “Fine. You’re in.”

 

A relieved look crossed both of their faces and they were about to thank Betty when she spoke again, “ _But_ if we don’t have any solid leads within the next hour, you’re out. Both of you.”

 

“Make it three hours,” Jughead bartered.

 

“Two.”

 

“Two and a half?”

 

“Now you’re down to half an hour,” Betty finalized crisply, turning around to the board.

 

Jughead couldn’t help the half smile that fell across his face when she walked away. He had missed her spirit, her sass. Noticing the look on the raven-haired boys face, Kevin narrowed his eyes and mouthed ‘ _I’m watching you’_ before turning around to join Betty at the board.

 

“So first off, we have Hiram and Hermione Lodge,” Betty pointed to their names.

 

“Her parents? You think they had something to with this own daughters disappearance?” Toni asked, taken aback.

 

“Um, Jason Blossom, ever heard of him? Keep up,” Kevin snapped.

 

“It’s more likely that one of their many enemies took her,” Jughead supplied, plainly.

 

“Exactly,” Betty agreed not missing the way he looked at her in quiet admiration, taking in all of her handiwork on the board. She faltered for a second, it felt as though nothing had changed between them. She cleared her throat, “If she was taken by one of his former associates or spurned clients, it’d be for money. And, if that were true, wouldn’t they have posted a ransom by now?”

 

“Could be waiting it out, making sure her parents get desperate enough to pay whatever demands they set,” Jughead suggested.

 

“Possibly,” Betty accepted, pacing in front of the board, “But who has the biggest stake against Hiram? Who’d he screw over the most when he was on trial?”

 

“That’s a pretty expansive list to narrow down on,” Kevin sighed.

 

“Yeah, but there’s only one who’s _nearby_. Close to home, knows the area, knows where Veronica would _be_ on a Friday night _and_ has already had a run-in with Veronica?” Betty surmised.

 

“Manfred Muggs!” Kevin and Jughead realized at the same time, eyeing each other up before sliding apart with mutual annoyance.

 

“Right so—” Betty was about to continue when the vibration of someone’s phone stopped her train of thought.

 

“Okay,” she said, exasperated, “Who’s phone is that?”

 

“Not mine,” Toni and Jughead replied.

 

Betty looked at her phone, it hadn’t gone off all night. The three of them looked at Kevin who held up his hands defensively, “Hey, my phone’s been dead since like, ten-thirty.”

 

The ringing continued and they searched across the room, looking for the source. Betty followed her ear to the right corner in the back of the room, on top of the tall, wooden cabinets.

 

She grabbed a chair, perching on it and feeling around the area with her hands. After a few moments she felt something leather and buzzing brush her fingertips, leading her to grab it and jump off of the chair.

 

To her surprise, she turned the item over in her hands, eyes going wide and breath pausing. She was holding a white, leather Michael Kors clutch in her hands. _Veronica’s_ clutch. Immediately, Betty opened the bag, finding her phone inside with a single message on the notification tray from an unknown number:

 

**_Looking for something, B?_ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wanted to post this earlier and make it a bit longer but then life hit me in the face. I'll be going away to Indiana for a few days so I won't have a lot time to write this week! Hopefully I can get the next chapter up by Monday :)


	3. Property of Someone Else

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gangs investigation is halted after a few roadblocks--but that doesn't stop certain truths from revealing themselves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aswellingstorm.tumblr.com

**Hour 5**

“How did you manage to even _break_ into her phone?” Sheriff Keller demanded, folding his arms across his chest and leaning against a wooden desk.

His team of officers were in the back of the room, analyzing Veronica’s phone and looking through the rest of the classroom for clues—something Betty would love to be doing if Kevin hadn’t called his dad to report the news of Veronicas phone. He claimed something about “ _obstruction of justice”,_ Betty thought it was ridiculous.

She rolled her eyes in response, too tired to care if she was being disrespectful, “My fingerprint is in her TouchID.” 

“ _What?”_ Kevin asked, scandalized, “She wouldn’t let me put _my_ thumb in her phone!”

 “Uh,” Jughead spoke up, “Remember when you tried to break into her phone to find some of her celebrity friends contacts and wound up locking her out of it for eight hours?”

“Bobby Flay is not a celebrity friend! He is a celebrity _chef—_ “ Kevin tried to correct, stopping only when his father interrupted. 

“You do realize that’s _tampering with evidence,_ right?” Keller asked, looking Betty in the eyes with a stern look in his eye. “I can’t imagine your mother would be too happy to hear about this.”

“Well, that’s at least _one_ thing you’re right about,” Alice Coopers voice resounded from the doorframe of the classroom.

Betty, Jughead and Kevin felt their hearts plummet at the sight of the woman. Even Toni could feel a chill in the air as the exhausted woman entered the room. Sheriff Keller moved to the doorway to update her on the situation, while the teenagers hung back.

“Any overbearing parents you forgot to call, Kev?” Jughead questioned rhetorically. Dark circles were beginning to show more promimently on his face. He was annoyed by the distraction and he felt like all of the adults in the room only served as roadblocks in the investigation.

“Well, I couldn’t exactly reach either of yours, Jughead,” Kevin fired back defensively. The taller boy regretted the words as soon as they were spoken. While he was known for his quick witt and sass, he was certain he definitely crossed a line.

“Kevin!” It was Betty who reacted first, she exclaimed his name at too-high of a decibel, forcing even the police dog to draw his attention to her. She spoke softer, still hissing out her word when she pulled him away from the other two, “Sidebar!”

Looking across his shoulder, Kevin could see Jughead seething, reeling from the hit and looking like he wanted to follow Betty to the corner of the room. Instead, Toni pulled him to the opposing corner.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Betty asked, crossing her arms with her brows furrowed.

“What do you think _you’re_ doing, Betty Cooper?” Kevin shot back in a whisper, “Why are the human forms of _Hot Topic_ and _Spencer’s_ here right now?” 

“Because they’re trying to help!” the blonde snapped. She could feel her face growing taunt with anger, heat rushing in frustration. “We were onto something before you had to call your dad!”

“Oh cut the crap Cooper!” Keving hinted at an ulterior motive, “We both know that the minute that your personal heartthrob Patrick Verona over there walked through the doors, it was game over!”

“I-Patrick-who-y-you-what? Me?” Betty sputtered, frantically feeling a blush creep across her face.  
  
Kevin settled back, smugly tilting his lips and his brow, “Exactly.”

Pointing out the fact that Betty was still far from over the Jones-boy caused her to temporarily short circuit. But once her mind regained it’s balance, she snapped back to attention, “Game over? Game _over_? No Kev, it’s not ‘game over’. He’s been— _they’ve_ been helping me more than you have!” 

“I brought you coffee!”

“Valid,” She conceded before pointing out all of the people in the room, “But you still caused all of this!” 

“I had to,” he pleaded, “he’s my dad—“

“I understand. I do,” She responded, wearily eyeing her mother in the corner, “But _you_ have to understand this isn’t a game Kevin, not to me. This is literally life or…” She gulped, wanting to avoid the next word, “ _Death_. And I can’t take the second option. I can’t. I won’t. So I’m not going to be distracted, whatever I felt for Jughead—it doesn’t matter anymore. Not now. I’m not going to let myself lose focus because of some petty highschool fling that never mattered.” 

Kevin nodded, nervously glancing in the opposite corner of the room, “Glad you think that.” 

Betty followed his gaze, landing on the subject of her previous sentence. He was locked in a tight embrace with Toni, her hand soothingly patting his back. They stayed like that for a few moments, before the pink haired girl pulled back , keeping her arms locked on Jugheads forearms. She was saying something comforting, Betty could tell by the way Jughead looked back at her with a shy smile and trusting eyes.  They were in their own little bubble, Toni even reached up to give him a gentle pat on the cheek. 

Betty wasn’t spiraling. Her heart wasn’t plummeting,  her existence didn’t’ feel inherently _wrong_ , skin didn’t feel ablaze, brain didn’t feel discombobulated or dizzy. She didn’t feel envy course through her like a fast-acting IV drip that administered the emotion all throughout her body. She didn’t wish she could _just disappear_ like Veronica did, have a hole appear in the middle of the floor to swallow her hole nor did she want for being curled up on her bed with icecream, binge-watching Netflix and picking out the names of her future cats. Her fists didn’t clench, her throat didn’t tighten, she didn’t roll her neck in an attempt to crack it. She didn’t twist the ring on her finger nor her toes didn’t curl as a result of nervous energy. Although she was only lying to herself, all of those actions had played out within a timeframe of ninety seconds, she whole-heartedly denied them. Because, Betty Cooper didn’t have _time_ to spiral.

“I am too. Glad, I mean…” She finally spoke in response to Kevin, voice breaking through her façade, “I’m happy she can understand him and…and be there for him better than I ever could.”

Kevin shot her a look of disbelief, one that quickly melted into horror as Alice Cooper stormed over.

“Elizabeth Cooper!” Her mom hollered, but Betty’s glance on the couple didn’t budge. She was transfixed on them, hypnotized by the scene that made her heart hammer against her chest. Kevin had to physically turn her around to face her mother, but not before Jughead looked up to catch her staring—a blush blooming across his cheeks. 

“Are you even _listening_ to me?” Alice’s voice cut in Betty’s frame of mind sharply.

“I don’t know mom, do I even need to?” Betty asked sweetly, tilting her head slightly to the side, “Are we just going to go through the same song and dance?”

Alice took a deep breath to calm herself. Her daughters resilience and snark reminded her so much of her own that, although it angered her, a small part of her heart saved the moment fondly. “You need to drop this. All of this,” she gestured to Betty’s board, “Now.”

“What? No!” Betty argued.

“ _Yes_ , I don’t care if you’ll hate me for it! But this—this is too dangerous. It was one thing to investigate Jason Blossoms murder, but whoever took Veronica is still out there! And trying to solve this by yourself can get you _killed_. Sheriff Keller thinks that whoever sent that text was trying to talk to you! They didn’t say V or Veronica!”

“It was just a typo mom! Look at how close B and V are on the keyboard,” She pointed out, “And I’m not by myself mom! I have Kevin…and Toni and Jughead.” At the latter's name, Alice raised her brows, further anger igniting. 

“And you think _that_ is a good idea?” Alice crossed her arms before leaning in to whisper, “That’s who you want on your little detective squad? You two couldn’t even figure out a relationship for heavens sake Betty!”

“Mom,” Betty’s demeanor shifted. She knew her mother was trying to use her emotions against her, in a wild attempt to throw Betty off the case.

“No, Elizabeth, you listen to me,” The older woman demanded, “I…you may be willing to forgive and forget, but it’s my job to protect you. From…murderers, to kidnappers to boys who break your heart. This is only going to hurt you more.” Jughead and Toni began to walk over and Alice raised her voice once more, “So that’s it. Tell Kevin goodbye, you’re going home. You can help me hang posters in the morning but—“

Her mother reached out to grab her wrist gently, but Betty wrenched it back, “No. I’m not going.”

“This is not a topic for debate Betty!”

“You’re right!” Betty admitted, hands raised in defense before being crossed over her shoulders, “It’s _not_. You can either force me to go home with you now and I can sneak out from under your grip when you’re not paying attention like I’ve done _so many_ times before, or I can even run the operation from my bedroom! I’ll do it, I’ll do _anything_ to help find her,” her eyes darkened, fingernails biting into tender skin, “So we can have it your way and waste precious time just for _Alice Cooper_ or you can butt out and let me do this!”

Alice Cooper was taken aback at her daughters harsh tone, only that had been reserved for only dire situations. Her mind flashed back the night when her daughter had thickly warned her that she’d _push_ back. Alice felt the chill in the air around her daughters words, gulping almost imperceptibly. “Fine,” she relented before upturning her face, “but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” 

“I won’t,” Betty assured, but before Alice turned away, she lingered on the necklace around Betty’s neck.

“Really Betty?” Her mother questioned, mildly aghast.

 “What?” The younger asked defensively.

 Alice Cooper wrapped her small but powerful fingers around the necklace hanging from Betty’s neck, brushing over the dainty jewel that Veronica had gifted her. “I should have known.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play dumb, Betty,” Alice’s eyes narrowed with a strong voice that betrayed the fatigue on her face, “Stealing _my_ jewelry? Your own father bought that for me with his _first_ paycheck! That’s a new low for you.”

With a vice grip, she tugged, dragging the metal chain against Betty’s neck, intent on snapping the chain. Right as it was about to break, Alice had a change of heart and let go.

“Keep it,” She said harshly, “But I want my pearls back.”

She turned on her heel, storming out of the room. Betty’s mouth was left hanging in shock, prompting Jughead to wave his hand in front of her face before stepping in front of her, “Betty? What’s wrong?”

Gently, he reached out to touch her arm, which Kevin swatted away with his own. She didn’t notice, she was too busy recalling the conversation she had with Veronica before they left for the dance. She’d known the jewelry had looked familiar—but didn’t think it came from her own house-her mothers boudoir.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Indiana is a weird place??? But also cool so thats the last time I complain about anything again (jk). Hope y'all enjoyed!


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